| Highlights of Dawn | June 1966 |
Man’s Wonderful Home
“Thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else.” —Isaiah 45:18
WE ARE living today in contradictory and perilous times. It is a time when the human race has the potential for providing in abundance all the good things of life, yet seventy-five per cent of mankind are living on a starvation diet, are ill clad, and millions of them without a roof over their heads. It is a time when billions of dollars are being spent to land a man on the moon, while the wisdom of this world is unable to solve the myriad perplexing situations here on earth which might easily lead to global hydrogen war.
One of the serious problems facing the world today is the population explosion. Throughout the thousands of years since the creation one generation has gone and another has come. The earth, which God created to be man’s home, seemed so large, and its resources so abundant, that there was no concern as to whether it would ever become overpopulated. But now, within the present generation, this possibility has become a real threat.
On the other hand, man has developed weapons of war which, if put to use in global strife, might well destroy the entire population of the earth. Human wisdom is striving desperately to solve both these problems. A global hydrogen war would solve the problem of an exploding population, but who wants it solved this way? It is a fearful thing to contemplate, but we have Jesus’ own assurance that the present “tribulation” will be brought to an end before all flesh is destroyed.—Matt. 24:21,22
When God created our first parents he made it plain to them that they were to multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. (Gen. 1:28) God prepared a garden “eastward in Eden” as a home for our first parents. In this garden was every tree that was pleasant to the eye and good for food. (Gen. 2:8,9) As the family of Adam and Eve increased they would need to extend the borders of Eden, and this would have continued until the entire earth was adequately populated and “subdued,” or brought under cultivation.
But there came the fall into sin and death. Man was driven out of his edenic home into the unfinished earth to die. This does not mean that God’s original design for man had failed, for the Bible reveals that through the redemptive work of Christ fallen man is to be restored to life, and to his earthly home. However, Satan declared to Eve that death would not be the penalty for sin—“Ye shall not surely die,” he said. (Gen. 3:4) God clearly stated that death would indeed be the penalty for sin, and that the sinner would return to the dust from which he was taken.—Gen. 2:7; 3:19
Contrary to this statement by the Creator, tradition insists that there is no death. All sorts of distorted theories have followed in the wake of this error, all of them implying that life on earth is but a temporary experience for man, and when he seems to die he is whisked off to another place of abode. It might be “purgatory,” or “hell,” or “heaven,” or one of the places or conditions contemplated in the various heathen religions of the world. Thus in one way or another all mankind fails to realize that the earth was created as an eternal home for humans.
It is a mistake to suppose that original sin led to the necessity of transferring Adam and his children to another place of abode, either in heaven, hell, or purgatory. Nothing was said to our first parents about going to heaven, or anywhere else. They were not threatened with the tortures of hell. They were told merely that disobedience to divine law would lead to death; that is, the loss of life with all its joys and blessings in that beautiful garden home which had been prepared for them “eastward in Eden.”
Ransom and Restitution
However, the disobedience of Adam did not destroy the divine purpose with respect to man and his earthly home, for the Bible reveals a plan of redemption and restoration through Christ. There are many details of this divine plan of salvation. Basically, however, and because Jesus gave his life to redeem Adam and his children from death, the human race is to be restored to life and given an opportunity to accept God’s grace through Christ, obey the laws of God then in force, and live forever here on the earth, just as Adam and Eve would have done had they been obedient to their Creator.
It was at Jesus’ first advent that he died to redeem fallen man from death. It is during his second presence, or visit to earth, that the work of restoring the race will be accomplished. Peter spoke of that period in the divine plan as “times of restitution of all things,” and explained that it had been foretold by the mouth of all God’s holy prophets since the world began. (Acts 3:19-21) The word “resurrection” is also used in the New Testament with respect to this work of restoration.
Will There Be Room?
Frequently, when the plan of God for the restoration of the human race to life on earth is presented, the objection is raised that the earth is not large enough to hold and provide for all the living and the restored dead. This objection has seemingly gained some weight in recent years as a result of the present population explosion. In this connection world economists are frankly concerned over what the situation will be as early as 1975. It is estimated that by then the United States will have a population of 230,000,000. Much of Europe and Asia are already overcrowded.
What, then, would be the situation throughout the earth in 1975, or thereafter, if divine power would begin to restore the dead to life? This is a situation which immediately stirs the imagination. It is not a hypothetical question, for according to the Bible it is just this that God has promised to do. The first thought of many is that it would result in humans being stacked up many tiers deep. This would not be a pleasant prospect; but is it really so?
Is there any way of knowing approximately how many people have lived on earth since man was created? Attempting to answer this question, the Eugenics Department of the Carnegie Institute estimates that some thirty billion have lived on the earth since the beginning of recorded history, which would take us back approximately to the time of our first parents. But what would it mean to have thirty billion added to the earth’s present population?
We can get a fairly accurate idea of this by noting the present density of population in various countries. There are many countries today which have fewer than twenty-five people per square mile. The average density of population for the entire earth is just a few over fifty per square mile, which is less than the density of population in the United States. On the other hand, there are a number of countries which have a population density of over 500 per square mile. With the thirty billion restored to life, the average world-wide population density would still be less than 100 per square mile.
The “Explosion”
These figures do not, of course, take into consideration the present exploding population, which in a very short time, without the resurrection, would cause the earth to be overpopulated. How does this situation fit into God’s plan of restitution? The answer to this question is implied in the Genesis account of man’s creation. Man was commanded to multiply and fill the earth. From this we conclude that God did not intend that humans should continue reproducing themselves once the earth was adequately filled with the human species.
The people are even now being prepared for this great change in human experience. Knowing what the present population explosion will mean in terms of hardship to future generations, efforts are now being made to slow down the “explosion” by furnishing birth control information, and encouraging the people to limit the size of their families. We do not think that human efforts will bring about a complete halt to procreation, but what is taking place today is preparing the minds of the people to accept God’s way when the “due time” comes. That “due time” will be when divine wisdom sees that a sufficient number of humans have been born to fulfill his original design of filling the earth.
The Kingdom Near
Man’s restoration to life and to human perfection will be accomplished through the agencies of Christ’s kingdom. In his plan God timed the establishment of this kingdom to coincide with the time when the earth’s population would reach the point of filling the earth. Today’s population explosion is, therefore, one of the outstanding proofs that the long-promised kingdom of Christ is indeed near.
The present population of earth is around three billion, and is doubling at least every fifty years. This means that one hundred years from now it would be twelve billion, and two hundred years from now forty-eight billion. This would indeed mean overpopulation. But, as the Bible reveals, there will be divine intervention, and just at the right time, which must be soon. Then human procreation will cease, and the restoration of the dead will begin.
The Earth’s Increase
When God sentenced our first parents to death he drove them out of that beautiful and productive garden which he had specially prepared for them, and into the unfinished earth to die. They were warned of the “thorns” and the “thistles” with which they would have to contend. And despite the pests and other handicaps with which man has had to battle he has managed to keep himself alive long enough to continue the process of procreation.
Now that we are entering the new age of the kingdom, when much more abundant food supplies will be needed, both for the living generation and for those who will be awakened from the sleep of death, God is permitting men to discover ways and means of securing a greatly increased supply of food from the ground. Mechanized farming in the United States has resulted in the production of much more food than the people of the United States can use. Because of this, and to keep the prices from declining, the government has been paying the farmers to keep a certain portion of their land out of production. Besides, the government has been purchasing huge quantities of surplus food.
Actually, while in the United States we have too much to eat, the people of many other countries are hungry. This is due to inefficient distribution, and the inability of the backward nations of earth to pay for the food which they so much need. This is one of the problems posed by human selfishness, and this problem will be solved through the administration of Christ’s kingdom.
Speaking of the time when the kingdom of Christ is ruling in the affairs of men, the Bible says, “Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.” (Ps. 67:6) And then there are those promises which assure us that “the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.” (Isa. 35:1,2) The deserts today comprise a considerable portion of the land surface of the earth. There are large areas of desert land in the Middle East, and even larger areas on the continent of Africa. And we have the great American deserts. Think of the countless millions who can be fed from these lands, when in the Lord’s providence they cease to be deserts and become productive!
Thus, while the exploding population of the earth today is causing concern among world economists, when viewed from the Bible’s standpoint we see that there is no cause for alarm. God created the earth to be man’s home, and he created man to enjoy this home forever. Surely the great Creator, with his infinite wisdom, would not make the mistake of creating the earth too small! Nor would he fail to make provision for halting the propagation of the race as soon as a sufficient number had been born to properly fill the earth.
What a wonderful place the earth will be when fully “subdued”! How happy restored mankind will be with all eternity before them to explore the beauties and marvels of the home the Creator has provided for them! They “shall build houses, and inhabit them,” wrote the Prophet Isaiah, and “they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.”—Isa. 65:21,22
No longer will it be necessary for mankind to contend with “thorns” and “thistles.” (Gen. 3:18) The tilling of the soil will not then be wearisome toil, but a pleasure. We cannot, of course, visualize all the changes which will take place for the well-being and happiness of man. But we do know that the whole earth will be as the Garden of Eden, that wonderful garden in which God placed every tree that was pleasant to the eye and good for food. (Gen. 2:9) The lot of restored man will be just as God designed that it should be, and we know that what he designs is good and is perfect.
Then “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isa. 11:9) Then the people will know that God did not create the earth to be destroyed by fire, but to be their everlasting home; that “he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited.” (Isa. 45:18) They will recognize, of course, that a few were called out from the world to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, laying down their lives as he did in divine service. They will know that the faithful among these have been exalted to the divine nature to live and reign with Christ in his kingdom; and that the blessings of the kingdom—the blessings of joy, peace, health, and everlasting life—are being dispensed to them by the exalted Jesus and his faithful followers of the present age, the “bride” of Christ.—Rev. 19:7
How wonderful, indeed, will be the experiences of the world of mankind when in that kingdom time they hear the invitation from the “Spirit and the bride” saying, “Come, … take the water of life freely.”—Rev. 22:17